The present invention relates generally to systems and methods of retaining holders of an account. More specifically, the invention includes systems and methods to determine and report incentives that will encourage customers to upgrade or resubscribe to the account.
Customers of transaction services, such as financial services, retail and vendor services, loyalty services, etc., receive almost daily solicitations through mail, email, and telephone trying to convince them to switch to a competing service. Industry standardization and technological advances, such as nearly ubiquitous secure Internet access, have also made it easier than ever for customers to switch service providers. These and other factors are causing increasing levels of customer turnover (also known as customer churn), and have created a need for effective methods and systems to retain and resubscribe existing customers.
One way service providers try to attract customers is through incentive programs. Many credit card issuers, for example, have incentive programs that offer new customers a lower interest rate on balances for the first six months. They may also offer a lower initial rate on balances being transferred from a competing credit card company. Service providers also have rewards programs for retaining customers and encouraging them to use the service. Rewards programs may include cash back programs that offer customers a percentage their money back (e.g., 0.5% to 2%) on transactions conducted with the card. Similar programs exist for frequent flier miles, merchandize coupons, hotel discounts, etc.
In the current competitive environment, customers have grown accustomed to checking and re-checking the advantages of competing incentive and rewards programs. New programs are introduced with increasing frequency, forcing providers to update their programs with more regularity to prevent customers from defecting. Thus, there is a need for methods and systems that allow providers to update incentive and rewards programs quickly and rapidly communicate the update to their customers.
One point when customers are particularly susceptible to switching service providers is when their current service reaches a scheduled termination and/or renewal time. These events often prompt customers to do some comparison shopping between the incentive and rewards programs they currently have with those offered by other providers. An existing provider who does not regularly update these programs to match a competitor's program risks losing a renewing or resubscribing customer. Thus, there is a need for methods and systems that can quickly communicate updated incentive and rewards programs to renewing and resubscribing customers.